Housing for gas regulator and gauges

ABSTRACT

A housing ( 10 ) for mounting on a mounting surface and for supporting and protectively enclosing a regulator ( 12 ) and one or more gauges ( 14,16 ) associated with providing, controlling, and monitoring a flow of gas from a pressurized gas supply, such as is commonly used, for example, in welding, cutting, and otherwise heating metal. The housing ( 10 ) comprises a front ( 20 ); a left side ( 22 ); a right side ( 24 ); a top ( 26 ), including a bolt flange ( 28 ); a bottom ( 30 ); a hinge ( 32 ); and a securement mechanism ( 34 ). The hinge ( 32 ) allows for easy access to the regulator ( 12 ) and gauges ( 14,16 ) without requiring that the housing ( 10 ) be completely removed from the mounting surface. The securement mechanism ( 34 ) includes one or more isolation mechanisms ( 64,68 ) for reducing or substantially eliminating transmission of potentially accuracy-affecting or otherwise damaging vibrations to the regulator ( 12 ) and gauges ( 14,16 ).

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of and claims priority benefit toU.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/288,350, filed Nov. 4, 2002 now U.S.Pat. No. 6,886,587 entitled HOUSING FOR GAS REGULATOR AND GAUGES, whichis hereby incorporated into the present application by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates broadly to housings for protectingregulators and gauges associated with pressurized gas supplies. Moreparticularly, the present invention concerns a housing for supportingand protectively enclosing a regulator and one or more gauges associatedwith providing, controlling, and monitoring a flow of a gas from apressurized gas supply, such as is commonly used, for example, inwelding, cutting, or otherwise heating metal, wherein the housing isboth modular and hingedly mounted for ease of use.

2. Description of the Prior Art

It is often desirable to transport pressurized gas supplies, such as,for example, conventional gas cylinders, by a truck or similar vehiclefor use onsite to weld, cut, or otherwise heat metal. Typically, aregulator is provided to stop, start, and otherwise control a flow of agas from the gas supply, and one or more gauges are provided formonitoring the flow. The regulator and gauges must be mounted so as tobe both conveniently accessible for use and visibly monitorable duringuse. Furthermore, it will be appreciated that it is highly desirable toprotect the regulator and gauges from damage, particularly from damagewhich could affect their accuracy.

In the prior art, it is well-known to provide a housing for protectivelyenclosing the regulator and the gauges. Typically, the regulator andgauges mount within or behind the housing and the housing itself mountsupon a surface of the truck or other vehicle. Unfortunately, prior arthousings suffers from a number of disadvantages, including, for example,that accessing the regulator or gauges for maintenance, leak testing, orother purposes is substantially inconvenient, requiring that the housingbe completely dismounted. Furthermore, where two or more different gasesand gas supplies are used, such as, for example, when welding or cuttingmetal using both oxygen gas and acetylene gas, a corresponding number ofhousings must be separately mounted to the vehicle, thereby undesirablyrequiring, for example, that twice as many mounting holes be drilledinto the mounting surface. Additionally, because the regulator andgauges are mounted to the housing and the housing is mounted to thevehicle, vibrations and impacts are often undesirably transferred fromthe vehicle to the regulator and gauges, thereby potentially resultingin decreased accuracy or other damage.

Due to these and other problems and disadvantages in the prior art, aneed exists for an improved housing for protectively enclosing theregulator and gauges.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is a distinct advance in the art of housings forsupporting and enclosing regulators and gauges associated withpressurized gas supplies. More particularly the present inventionprovides a housing for mounting on a mounting surface and for supportingand protectively enclosing a regulator and one or more gauges associatedwith providing, controlling, and monitoring a flow of gas from apressurized gas supply, such as is commonly used, for example, inwelding, cutting, and otherwise heating metal.

In a preferred embodiment, the housing broadly comprises a front; a leftside; a right side; a top, including a bolt flange; a bottom; a hinge;and a securement mechanism. The front, left and right sides, top, andbottom are all constructed of heavy gauge powder-coated steel. The frontis operable to support and frontally protect the regulator and gauges,and presents a regulator hole and two gauge holes through which themounted regulator and gauges can be seen and monitored during use.

The left side and the right side cooperate to support and space thefront from the mounting surface and to further protect the regulator andgauges. The left and right sides each present one or more hose holes oropenings and one or more keyhole slots. The hose openings allow a firsthose to enter the housing and a second hose to exit the housing. Thekeyhole slots provide a mechanism for supporting and retaining aconnector end of the second hose or a working device connected theretoduring periods of non-use.

The top aids in mounting the housing to the mounting surface and infurther protecting the regulator and gauges. As it is often desirable touse multiple gas supplies, and doing so requires a corresponding numberof housings, the top provides a number of top bolt holes for couplingthe top of one housing to the bottom of another housing, thereby makingthe housing advantageously modular. The bolt flange projects rearwardlyand upwardly from a rearmost edge of the top, and presents a boltopening operable to removably receive a bolt for securing the top to themounting surface.

The bottom aids in mounting the housing to the mounting surface and infurther protecting the regulator and gauges. The bottom provides anumber of bottom bolt holes for attaching the hinge. The bottom boltholes are aligned with the top bolts holes so that, with the hingeremoved, the bottom of one housing can be coupled with the top ofanother housing so that the two housings form a single unit. The hingeis a substantially conventional hinge structure. With the bolt removedfrom the bolt flange of the top of the housing, the housing can bepivoted about the hinge and lowered to allow for accessing the regulatorand gauges while remaining attached to the mounting surface by thehinge.

The securement mechanism is operable to safely secure the regulator andgauges within the protective enclosure formed by the front, the left andright sides, the top, and the bottom. The securement mechanism includesa forward isolation mechanism in the form of a large O-ring; a mountingplate; and a rear isolation mechanism in the form of a small O-ring. Thelarge forward O-ring is interposed between the front and a face portionof the regulator so as to prevent the transmission of vibrations orimpacts therebetween. The mounting plate is operable to removably securethe regulator to the front. The small rearward O-ring is interposedbetween the mounting plate and a rear portion of the regulator so as toprevent the transmission of vibrations or impacts therebetween.

Thus, it will be appreciated that the housing of the present inventionprovides substantial advantages over the prior art, including, forexample, that the housing is hingedly mounted so as to facilitate easierand more convenient access to the enclosed regulator and gauges withoutrequiring that the housing be completely dismounted. Furthermore, thehousing is advantageously modular, allowing multiple housings to beattached to one another to form an integral unit, with the unit, ratherthan the individual housings, being then mounted to the vehicle. Thus,if N number of bolts are required to mount a single housing, and it isdesired to mount M number of housings, then the present inventioncontinues to require only N number of bolts and bolt holes while theprior art requires (N×M) number of bolts and bolt holes. Thus, thepresent invention reduces the complexity of and labor involved inmounting multiple housings, and reduces the number of holes which mustbe provided in the mounting surface. Additionally, the shock-absorbingisolation mechanisms of the securement mechanism advantageously protectthe regulator and gauges from exposure to potentially damaging oraccuracy-affecting vibrations and impacts which might otherwise betransmitted via the housing.

These and other important aspects of the present invention are morefully described in the section entitled DETAILED DESCRIPTION, below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A preferred embodiment of the present invention is described in detailbelow with reference to the attached drawing figures, wherein:

FIG. 1 is an isometric view of a preferred embodiment of the housing ofthe present invention, wherein two instances of the housing arevertically joined for convenient mounting;

FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the housing of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 is an isometric view of two instances of the housing mountedhorizontally adjacent one another.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring to the figures, a housing 10 is shown constructed inaccordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. Thehousing 10 is operable to protectively enclose a regulator 12 and one ormore gauges 14,16 associated with providing, controlling, and monitoringa flow of a gas from a pressurized gas supply. The gas supply may be,for example, a conventional gas cylinder which is commonly used inwelding, cutting, or otherwise heating metal. It should be noted thatthe housing 10 is independent of the regulator 12 and gauges 14,16 whichare substantially conventional and commonly available. The housing 10may be mounted on a vehicle or shop wall or other mobile or stationarymounting surface.

In a preferred embodiment, the housing 10 broadly comprises a front 20;a left side 22; a right side 24; a top 26, including a bolt flange 28; abottom 30; a hinge 32; and a securement mechanism 34. The front 20 isoperable to support and frontally protect the regulator 12 and gauges14,16. As illustrated, the front 20 is constructed of a substantiallysquare piece of 14 gauge powder-coated steel presenting a regulator hole36 and two gauge holes 38,40 through which the mounted regulator 12 andgauges 14,16 may be seen and monitored during use. Additional holes maybe provided as needed or desired for a particular application.

The left side 22 and the right side 24 cooperate to support and spacethe front 20 from the mounting surface and to further protect theregulator 12 and gauges 14,16. As illustrated, the left and right sides22,24 are each substantially identical and constructed of elongatedrectangular pieces of 14 gauge powder-coated steel welded to opposingvertical ends of the front 20 so as to project rearwardly therefrom andparallel to one another. The left and right sides 22,24 have sufficientwidths to space the front 20 a distance apart from the mounting surfacesufficient to accommodate the regulator 12 and gauges 14,16therebetween.

The left and right sides 22,24 each present one or more hose holes oropenings 44 and one or more keyhole slots 46. The hose openings 44 allowa first hose 48 to enter the housing 10 to couple the regulator 12 withthe gas supply, and allow a second hose 50 having a connector end toexit the housing 10 to couple the regulator 12 with a wand or otherworking device. Thus, the hose openings 44 are substantially alignedwith corresponding hose connection points on the regulator 12.

The keyhole slots 46 each appear as an upper larger hole overlapping alower smaller hole. The connector end of the aforementioned second hose50 may, during periods of non-use, be disconnected from the wand andplaced into the upper larger hole portion of the keyhole slot 46 andlowered into the lower smaller hole portion, wherein the dimensions ofthe lower smaller hole portion are such that the connector end cannotinadvertently fall therefrom. Thus, the second hose 50 may be safelysecured until desired for use, at which time the connector end is liftedfrom the lower smaller hole portion into the upper larger hole portionand then drawn forth therefrom.

The top 26 aids in mounting the housing 10 to the mounting surface andin further protecting the regulator 12 and gauges 14,16. As illustrated,the top 26 is a substantially elongated rectangular piece of 14 gaugepowder-coated steel welded to an upper edge of the front 20 and to upperedges of both the left and right sides 22,24 so as to projectperpendicularly relative to each of these components and parallel to thebottom 30. The top 26 provides a number of top bolt holes 27 forattaching the top 26 to a bottom of a second housing 10 b (as shown inFIG. 1), as described below.

The bolt flange 28 projects rearwardly and upwardly from a rearmost edgeof the top 26. The bolt flange 28 presents a bolt hole or opening 50operable to removably receive a bolt 52 for securing the top 26 to themounting surface or to the second housing 10 b. The bolt flange 28projects slightly rearwardly from the top 26 in order to accommodateattachment of the second housing 10 b, as described below. Inalternative embodiments, the bolt flange 28 may be associated with theleft or right side 22,24 or with the bottom 30.

The bottom 30 aids in mounting the housing 10 to the mounting surfaceand in further protecting the regulator 12 and gauges 14,16. Asillustrated, the bottom 30 is a substantially elongated rectangularpiece of 14 gauge powder-coated steel welded to a lower edge of thefront 20 and to lower edges of both the left and right sides 22,24 so asto project perpendicularly relative to each of these components andparallel to the top 26. The bottom 30 provides a number of bottom boltholes 31 for attaching the hinge 32. The bottom bolt holes 31 arealigned with the top bolts holes 27 so that, with the hinge 32 removed,the bottom 30 of the housing 10 can be coupled with a top of the secondhousing 10 b so that the two housings 10,10 b form a single unit.

The hinge 32 is a substantially conventional hinge structure, having afirst side 56 and a second side 58 which are pivotably joined about apivot axis 60. As illustrated, the first side 56 provides a number ofbolt holes 57 for receiving bolts for removably attaching the first side56 to the bottom 30. The second side 58 similarly provides a number ofbolt holes 59 for receiving bolts for removably attaching the secondside 58 to the mounting surface. The pivot axis 60 is located adjacentand along a rearward edge of the bottom 30. Thus, with the bolt 52removed from the bolt flange 28, the housing 10 can be lowered to allowfor accessing the regulator 12 and gauges 14,16 while remaining attachedto the mounting surface by the hinge 32. In alternative embodiments,particularly where the bolt flange 28 is associated with the left orright sides 22,24 or with the bottom 30, the hinge 32 may be associatedwith, respectively, the right or left side 24,22 or with the top 26.Such alternative embodiments, it will be appreciated, provide many ofthe same advantages as the illustrated embodiment.

The securement mechanism 34 is operable to safely secure the regulator12 and gauges 14,16 within the protective enclosure formed by the front20, the left and right sides 22,24, the top 26, and the bottom 30. Thesecurement mechanism 34 includes a forward isolation mechanism in theform of large a O-ring or gasket 64; a mounting plate 66; and a rearisolation mechanism in the form of a small O-ring or gasket 68. Thelarge forward O-ring 64 is substantially conventional, being constructedof rubber or a similar vibration and impact-dampening or absorbingmaterial, and is interposed between the front 20 and a face portion ofthe regulator 12 so as to prevent the transmission of vibrations orimpacts therebetween.

The mounting plate 66 is operable to removably secure the regulator 12to the front 20. As illustrated, the mounting plate 66 is asubstantially elongated rectangular piece of metal having one or morebolt holes 72. The bolt holes 72 are spaced apart a distance greaterthan the diameter of the regulator 12 so that bolts 74 inserted throughthe bolt holes 72 extend past the regulator 12 to the front 20 andcouple therewith, thereby removably clamping the regulator 12 betweenthe mounting plate 66 and the front 20. Provision, in the form of athreaded recess 76 or bolt hole, is made on or in the front 20 toreceive the bolts 74.

The small rearward O-ring 68 is substantially conventional, beingconstructed of rubber or a similar vibration and impact-dampening orabsorbing material, and is interposed between the mounting plate 66 anda rear portion of the regulator 12 so as to prevent the transmission ofvibrations or impacts therebetween. Thus, the regulator 12, and thegauges 14,16 coupled therewith, are effectively isolated by the largeforward and small rearward O-rings 64,68 from potentially damaging oraccuracy-affecting vibrations and impacts which might otherwise betransmitted via the housing 10 or the mounting plate 66.

In exemplary use and operation, the large forward O-ring 64 of thesecurement mechanism 34 is positioned about the regulator hole 36 cutinto the front 20. Next, a face portion of the regulator 12 is placedagainst the large forward O-ring 64 and the small rearward O-ring 68 ispositioned on a rear portion of the regulator 12. The mounting plate 66is placed against the small rearward O-ring 68 and the bolts 74 areinserted through the holes 72 in the mounting plate and threaded intothe threaded recesses 76 provided on the front 20. Thus is the regulator12, with the gauges 14,16 attached thereto, securely coupled with thehousing 10.

Next the housing 10 is placed against the pre-drilled mounting surfaceand bolts are used to secure the second side 58 of the hinge 32 thereto.Lastly, the bolt 52 is inserted through the bolt hole 50 of the boltflange 28 of the top 26 and tightened. Thus is the housing 10 secured tothe mounting surface so as to support and protectively enclose theregulator 12 and gauges 14,16.

Should it thereafter become necessary to access the regulator 12 orgauges 14,16 for maintenance, leak testing, or other reasons, the bolt52 is removed and the housing 10 is lowered by pivoting it about thepivot axis 60 of the hinge 32.

Referring particularly to FIG. 1, where it is desired to transport anduse two or more gas supplies, two of the housings 10,10 b each includingits own instance of the regulator 12, a cylinder pressure gauge 14, anda working pressure gauge 16, are mounted on a vehicle. A first one ofthe housings 10 may, for example, be associated with regulating andmonitoring a flow of oxygen from a first cylinder or other pressurizedcontainer, and a second one of the housings 10 may be associated withregulating and monitoring a flow of a fuel gas, such as, for example,acetylene, from a second cylinder or other pressurized container,wherein the oxygen and acetylene are used in combination for welding orcutting. Whereas the prior art required that each housing be separatelymounted, thereby undesirably requiring a relatively large number of boltholes or other fasteners, the housing 10 of the present invention ismodular and vertically combinable with the one or more additionalhousings 10 b to form a unit which is then mounted in the same mannerand with the same number of bolt holes as a single housing.Alternatively, referring particularly to FIG. 3, the modular housings 10c,10 d may be mounted horizontally adjacent one another, as necessary ordesired.

From the preceding description, it can be appreciated that the housingof the present invention provides substantial advantages over the priorart, including, for example, that the housing is hingedly mounted so asto facilitate easier and more convenient access to the enclosedregulator and gauges without requiring that the housing be completelydismounted. Furthermore, the housing is advantageously modular, allowingmultiple housings to be attached to one another to form an integralunit, with the unit, rather than the individual housings, being thenmounted to the vehicle. Thus, if N number of bolts are required to mounta single housing, and it is desired to mount M number of housings, thenthe present invention continues to require only N number of bolts andbolt holes while the prior art requires (N×M) number of bolts and boltholes. Thus, the present invention reduces the complexity of and laborinvolved in mounting multiple housings, and reduces the number of holeswhich must be provided in the mounting surface. Additionally, theshock-absorbing isolation mechanisms of the securement mechanismadvantageously protect the regulator and gauges from exposure topotentially damaging or accuracy-affecting vibrations and impacts whichmight otherwise be transmitted via the housing.

Although the invention has been described with reference to thepreferred embodiment illustrated in the attached drawings, it is notedthat equivalents may be employed and substitutions made herein withoutdeparting from the scope of the invention as recited in the claims.Furthermore, applications are contemplated for the housing hereindescribed that require only minor modifications to the device asdisclosed. Thus, for example, alternative embodiments are contemplatedwherein the bolt flange and the top bolt holes are associated with theleft or right sides or with the bottom; the hinge and the bottom boltholes are associated with the right or left side or with the top; or thehose openings and the keyhole slots are associated with the top orbottom. Furthermore, different materials or gauges of metal may be used,and any number of regulators or gauges, may be accommodated in a singlehousing by providing an equal number of holes in the front and anappropriate number of securement mechanisms. Additionally, whilecombining two housings to form a single unit is described herein asinvolving removal of the hinge of one of the housings, alternativeembodiments are contemplated wherein the hinge may be welded to thehousing and the bottom bolt holes provided through both the bottom andthe permanently attached hinge such that the described process ofcoupling the two housings is accomplished without removing the hinge.

Having thus described the preferred embodiment of the invention, what isclaimed as new and desired to be protected by Letters Patent includesthe following:

1. A housing for securing to a mounting surface and protectivelyenclosing a regulator and a gauge associated with providing a flow of agas from a gas supply, the housing comprising: an enclosure for defininga substantially enclosed area for encasing the regulator and the gauge;a hinge for pivotally securing the housing to the mounting surface; andan attachment component for selectively and removably securing thehousing to a second housing, wherein when the housing is secured to thesecond housing the housing and the second housing form a unit that canbe pivotably mounted upon the mounting surface using the hinge.
 2. Thehousing as set forth in claim 1, further comprising a second attachmentcomponent for releasably securing the housing to the mounting surface,wherein when the attachment component is released the remainder of thehousing can be pivoted as a unit upon the hinge and away from themounting surface so as to expose and allow access to the regulator andthe gauge.
 3. The housing as set forth in claim 2, wherein the secondattachment component includes a bolt flange operable to receive a boltfor securing the housing to the mounting surface.
 4. The housing as setforth in claim 1, wherein a front of the enclosure presents a regulatorhole corresponding to the regulator and a gauge hole corresponding tothe gauge.
 5. The housing as set forth in claim 1, further comprising asecurement mechanism for securing the regulator and the gauge to thehousing.
 6. The housing as set forth in claim 5, wherein the securementmechanism includes a mounting plate for removably clamping the regulatorand the gauge to a front of the enclosure.
 7. The housing as set forthin claim 6, wherein the securement mechanism further includes a firstisolation mechanism operable to be interposed between the front of theenclosure and the regulator and to dampen transmission of vibrationstherebetween, and a second isolation mechanism operable to be interposedbetween the regulator and the mounting plate and to dampen transmissionof vibrations therebetween.
 8. The housing as set forth in claim 1,wherein a side of the enclosure presents a hose hole operable to allow ahose to pass therethrough.
 9. The housing as set forth in claim 1,wherein the attachment component includes one or more bolt holes in atop of the enclosure operable to receive one or more bolts for securingthe housing to the second housing.
 10. The housing as set forth in claim1, further including a keyhole slot having a larger upper holeoverlapping a smaller lower hole, wherein the keyhole slot is operableto receive and retain a connector end of a hose.
 11. A housing operableto secure to a mounting surface and to protectively enclose a regulatorand one or more gauges associated with providing a flow of a gas from agas supply, the housing comprising: a front presenting a regulator holecorresponding to the regulator and one or more gauge holes correspondingto the one or more gauges; a securement mechanism operable to removablycouple the regulator with the housing, the securement mechanismincluding one or more isolation mechanisms operable to dampentransmission of vibrations to the regulator; a bolt flange operable toreceive a bolt for securing the housing to the mounting surface; and ahinge operable to pivotably secure the housing to the mounting surface,wherein, when the bolt is removed from the bolt flange, the remainder ofthe housing can be pivoted as a unit upon the hinge and away from themounting surface so as to expose and allow access to the regulator andthe one or more gauges, and wherein, given an identical second housinghaving a second bolt flange and a second hinge, the housing and thesecond housing can be coupled to form a unit by removing the secondhinge and bolting a bottom of the second housing to a top of thehousing, wherein the unit can then be mounted upon the mounting surfaceusing only the hinge and the second bolt flange.
 12. The housing as setforth in claim 11, further including a keyhole slot having a largerupper hole overlapping a smaller lower hole, wherein the keyhole slot isoperable to receive and retain a connector end of a hose.
 13. Thehousing as set forth in claim 11, wherein the bolt flange is secured toa top of the housing.
 14. The housing as set forth in claim 11, furthercomprising a securement mechanism for securing the regulator and thegauge to the front of the housing.
 15. The housing as set forth in claim14, wherein the securement mechanism includes a mounting plate forremovably clamping the regulator to the front of the housing.
 16. Thehousing as set forth in claim 15, wherein the securement mechanismfurther includes a first isolation mechanism operable to be interposedbetween the front of the enclosure and the regulator and to dampentransmission of vibrations therebetween.
 17. The housing as set forth inclaim 16, wherein the securement mechanism further includes a secondisolation mechanism operable to be interposed between the regulator andthe mounting plate and to dampen transmission of vibrationstherebetween.
 18. The housing as set forth in claim 11, wherein a sideof the housing presents a hose hole operable to allow a hose to passtherethrough.
 19. A housing for securing to a mounting surface andprotectively enclosing a regulator and one or more gauges associatedwith providing a flow of a gas from a gas supply, the housingcomprising: a plurality of walls for defining a substantially enclosedarea for encasing the regulator and the one or more gauges; a hingesecured to a bottom wall of the plurality of walls, wherein the hingepivotally secures the bottom wall to the mounting surface; a bolt flangeon a top wall of the plurality of walls, wherein the bolt flangereceives a bolt and secures the top to the mounting surface so that whenthe bolt is removed from the flange the remainder of the housing can bepivoted as a unit upon the hinge and away from the mounting surface soas to expose and allow access to the regulator and the one or moregauges; and one or more top bolt holes for selectively and removablysecuring a top of the housing to a bottom of a second housing, whereinthe housing and the second housing form a unit that can be pivotallymounted upon the mounting surface using the hinge.